Top o' the evening to you
By Peter M. Gianotti
Newsday
Irish whiskey, the leprechaun of top-shelf spirits, is making mischief.
Quality, variety and sales are up, as the fuel for Irish coffee, countless hot toddies and a very fine highball has turned neat for many drinkers.
“More and more people have developed a taste for it,” said Michael Douglass, president of Post Wines & Spirits in Syosset, N.Y., where 15 types of Irish whiskey are sold. “And it’s a little different taste.”
Today, you’ll find single-malts, blends, year-dated and limited-production whiskeys. Some are made the traditional, pot-still way; most, with large, more commercial column stills.
Overall, the smooth, lighter style of many Irish whiskeys provides an easygoing alternative to peaty Scotch and straight bourbon. And in the past decade, consumption of Irish whiskey has jumped -- 18.4 percent in 2005-06, according to the 2007 annual spirits study by Impact, which monitors the alcoholic beverage industry.
The Irish whiskeys that dominate the market worldwide carry the labels of Jameson, the largest; and Bushmills, celebrating its 400th birthday this year.
Try your hand at whipping up your own Irish coffee to ring in St. Patrick's Day.
IRISH COFFEE1 1/2 ounces Irish whiskey
Hot coffee
Sugar to taste
Whipped cream1. Into Irish coffee glass rimmed with sugar, pour Irish whiskey.
2. Fill to within 1/2 inch of top with coffee.
3. Cover surface to brim with whipped cream.
Adapted from “Mr. Boston Platinum Edition,” edited by Anthony Giglio (Wiley, 2006)
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